Why did over 2000 people come to the Smart Building and Living Expo this year?

Perhaps it was the beautiful weather but many locals came to catch up with friends while newcomers enjoyed talking with the 65 businesses and community groups involved in stalls and displays.

We were heartened by the response of the community who dared to come along on the day and who are showing great leadership in making change.

Well done to everyone and thank you to all those who contributed to the success of this great event. Please take the time to read the reports below and there are some ripper photos on our Facebook page!Andrea Mason, Expo Director

A big Thank You from the Expo Team to our Sponsors!

A Really Big Thank You to the Expo Team

Also a big thank you to the volunteers who helped us set up, clean up and pack up- your input is invaluable.

Thanks also to Stephanie for the photography and Buninyong Community Events Inc for the loan of equipment.

The team from Buninyong Sustainability has run this expo for seven years and we take pride in hosting a great community event that is making a difference. Our message is simple – take the time to learn something new and make at least one change that can improve your living standards while helping the fight against climate change.

And we know that our message reached far more than those who came along on the day with our social media reaching over 23,000 people!

We loved this google review on the day –

“Strike rate of about 20% of things I am interested in which is very high for an expo.”

As it is across the globe, our young ones are leading the way and the Buninyong PS loved showing off the solar bikes and solar boats built by the students. The children's free activities - building and creating with Totally Treehouse, planting herbs, and face painting were a great drawcard, and children played happily while parents spent some time finding out about sustainable design, or building, or how to make compost!

There is a growing interest in reducing waste and making do with what we have. The Grampians Central West Waste & Resource Recovery Group Can Do Communities Hall ran with the theme of ‘Keeping it Local – in your home and in your community’, with demonstrations by Granny Skills guru, Rebecca Sullivan on a variety of easy to do, waste free activities for your home – from cleaners to preserves to re-use of textiles. Captain Compost was there to show people how to compost, look after their worm farm and start some seed saving in their garden.

A key feature - the electric vehicle displays once again drew lots of interest. Local Buninyong enthusiasts brought their own cars down for everyone to see. With the experts on charging stations on hand and the Nissan Leaf available locally, electric cars are becoming a viable option for more people – and they go faster than with greater torque than other cars!

Once again, our many experts on designing, building and fitting out sustainable homes were overwhelmed by the level of interest. We know that going solar is one of the most effective ways of offsetting our energy use and the questions came thick and fast.

Some feedback from one of our exhibitors - “The crowds were good and lots of healthy discussion had around sustainability. Well done to you all”.

The Expo has also proven that it is a great place for big ideas - four years ago we hatched a plan to bring an EV plug to Buninyong and this year the fledgling idea of a Carbon Neutral Buninyong was brought to the community for comment.

There were even more community groups demonstrating how they are doing their bit and showed how easy it can be. The interest and take up for these groups was stronger than ever. Doing something in your community might be as easy as helping or volunteering with boomerang bag groups, repair cafes, local food co-operatives, environmental groups or local litter clean ups.

Expo Director Andrea Mason said she was heartened by the response of the community who dared to come along on the day and who are showing great leadership in making change.

Buninyong's Smart Building and Living Expo - A FREE event, Sunday the 23rd of February 2020 from 10am to 3:30pm

Now in its seventh year, the Smart Building and Living Expo is an established feature of Australia’s biggest Sustainable Living Festival.

The Sustainable Living Festival aims to inspire and empower you to live a more sustainable life, by showing you how to incorporate small changes to what you do everyday, and povide tools and incentives to change.

The Expo in Buninyong will showcase leading solutions to the ecological and social challenges we face.

CLEAN LIVING: Andrea Mason believes this year's Buninyong Smart Building & Living Expo will be the biggest in its seven year history. Picture: Justin Whitelock

Buninyong Smart Building & Living Expo organiser Andrea Mason is expecting the 2020 edition of the festival to be the biggest in its seven year history.

Ms Mason believes because of the recent bushfires and other extreme weather events, climate change and how to help combat climate change has never been a bigger talking point.

"The bushfires have really brought climate change into the spotlight," she said.

"I think a lot more people are aware of what is happening and a lot more people are open to what they can do around the house to help reduce their carbon footprint... it's up to the community to make the change."